Apparatus and method for penetration with shaft having a sensor for sensing penetration depth

An apparatus having a shaft that can sense the depth of penetration, for penetrating into an object (the substrate). The substrate being penetrated has impedance that varies according to the depth under a surface of the substrate. The shaft has a tip for penetration and has conductive ends near to the tip of the shaft. A change of impedance of material of the object between the conductive ends can be sensed to provide information on the depth of penetration. A processor can be provided external to the object being penetrated by the shaft to gather and process the impedance information to determine whether the desired depth has been achieved.

Skip to: Description  ·  Claims  ·  References Cited  · Patent History  ·  Patent History
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/050,853 entitled “Apparatus and Method for Penetration with Shaft having a Sensor for Sensing Penetration Depth”, filed Mar. 30, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,391,005 which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

When inserting a long structure into an object, such as a needle into the tissue of a patient, it is often necessary to know how deep the penetration is. Penetration past the required depth for a desired result wastes effort and causes undue discomfort to the patient. Often the information is needed in a short time because further penetration may cause unnecessary damage to the object and it is desirable to stop the penetration once a predetermined depth is reached. For example, the analysis and quantification of blood components is an important diagnostic tool for better understanding the physical condition of a patient and blood samples need to be obtained by inflicting a wound by a needle or lancet. Inserting the needle or lancet to a depth deeper than necessary produces excessive pain and trauma to the skin tissue. In patients such as diabetics, who have to sample blood often, any excessive pain or tissue trauma is a disincentive to comply with the blood sampling routine.

The skin is consisted of two layers—the epidermis and the dermis. The capillary structures connected to the arterial and venous vascular beds rise vertically and are located in the dermis layer. The neural sensors such as Meissner's corpuscles and free nerve endings are also located in the dermis. Layers of subcutaneous tissues lie below the dermis. The supply arterial and venous capillaries are located laterally in this tissue bed. There is also adipose tissue interleaved with afferent and efferent nerve fibers along with their associated sensors interwoven within the vascular bed. The thicknesses of these tissue layers differ from individual to individual. Currently, commercially available needle or lancet for puncturing skin have preset penetration depth based on experimental data from lancing, Thus, there is no certainty that the optimal depth of penetration is reached every time such a needle or lancet is used. To avoid unsuccessful blood sampling due to inadequate depth, a patient often overpenetrates the skin, causing unnecessary pain.

What is needed is a needle or lancet for sampling blood that can be used for inserting to the optimal depth without over or under penetration. Similarly, there is a need in other penetration applications for inserting a long shaft into an object without over or under penetration.

SUMMARY

In the present invention, the depth of penetration of an elongated structure into an object is determined by an impedance sensor that senses the impedance of the material penetrated by the elongated structure at the tip of the elongated structure.

In one aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus having a shaft for penetration into an object which has impedance that varies according to the depth under a surface of the object. The apparatus contains a shaft that includes a shaft body having a tip for penetration and two conductive ends near the tip. The two conductive ends are near the tip such that a change of impedance of the material of the object sensed between the conductive ends will provide information on whether the desired depth of penetration has been reached.

This invention is especially applicable in obtaining blood from a patient by puncturing the skin because a shaft of the present invention takes advantage of the electrical impedance differences between deeper layers of skin tissue relative to the more shallow upper layer. The impedance can be monitored by, for example, a metallic needle that pierces the layers of skin tissue. When the needle initially penetrates into the outer epidermis and dermis layers of the skin, an initial high impedance is seen. A decline in the impedance is observed as the needle approaches the adipose layer.

Using the apparatus, including the shaft of the present invention, optimal penetration into an object that has electrical impedance which varies with penetration depth can be achieved. In the case of obtaining blood from a patient by inserting a needle into the skin, this can minimize the trauma and pain of overpenetration, as well as avoid the frustration and pain of unsuccessful blood sampling because of inadequate penetration. Such reduction of discomfort and tissue damage can significantly improve the compliance of patients with a blood sampling routine, for example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following figures are included to better illustrate the embodiments of the apparatus and technique of the present invention. In these figures, like numerals represent like features in the several views.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of an apparatus of the present invention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B show an embodiment of a shaft of the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of a shaft of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows yet another embodiment of a shaft of the present invention.

FIGS. 5A and 5B show a lancet of the present invention.

FIGS. 6A and 6B show apparatuses including an embodiment of a driver for driving a shaft according to the present invention.

FIG. 7A shows an apparatus including an embodiment of a driver for driving a shaft.

FIG. 7B shows an apparatus including a portion of an embodiment of a driver for driving a shaft.

FIG. 8 shows an apparatus including a portion of a piezoelectric driver for driving a shaft.

FIG. 9 shows an apparatus including a portion of a fluid-driven driver for driving a shaft.

FIG. 10 shows a flow diagram for an algorithm for controlling the driver for driving a shaft according to the present invention.

 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the present invention provides a technique for sensing the depth of penetration when inserting a shaft into a body. As used herein, the term “shaft” refers to an object with a generally elongated body with a tip for penetrating the body of interest. The body of the shaft, depending on the application, can be rigid or somewhat flexible. Preferably, the tip has a relative sharp point or beveled lancet to facilitate penetration. The point is adequate sharp such that the shaft can be pushed into the body without the need for passing along a preexisting hole. The body of the shaft can have a cross section that is round or non-round (e.g., having a rectangular cross section). As an example, a needle-sized shaft suitable for hypodermic insertion is described in the following embodiments. It is to be understood that other non-hypodermic shafts, including shafts for non-medical purposes, can be made and used according to the present invention.

Needles and Lancets

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of an apparatus for driving a shaft for penetrating skin according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, the apparatus 100 includes a shaft 102 (e.g., a needle or lancet) with conductive ends for sensing the impedance of tissue about the tip 103 of the shaft 102. An impedance sensor 104 (which includes electrical circuitry that senses impedance) electrically connected to the conductive ends senses the electrical impedance. Electrical devices and circuits that sense the electrical impedance between two points, e.g., in a material or in a circuit, are known in the art. An electrically controlled driver 106 drives the shaft 102 to penetrate the skin of the patient and tissue under it, which can be referred to as the “substrate” of penetration. The driver 106 is controlled by a processor 108, which stops the driver when the impedance sensor 104 senses an impedance change indicating the desired penetration has been achieved.

For illustration, FIG. 2A shows an embodiment of a portion of a hypodermic needle 110 that can be used in the present invention, e.g., as the shaft 102 in the apparatus 100. FIG. 2A is a sectional view along the axis of the hypodermic needle 110 and FIG. 2B shows a cross section of the hypodermic needle 110. The hypodermic needle 110 includes a stiff shaft body 112 halting a sharp tip 114 at the distal end 115 for penetration into tissue. The shaft body 112 has a stiff, electrically non-conductive (e.g., polymeric, such as polyimide) tubing 116 with a central lumen 118 at the axis of the tubing 116. An electrically conductive (e.g., metallic tungsten) wire 120 located at the approximate axis of the tubing 116 extends from the sharp tip 114 proximally. The tungsten wire 120 has a distal conductive end 123 proximate to the distal end 115. As used herein, the term “distal” refers to the direction towards the object (e.g. the patient's skin) when the needle is about to penetrate the object and the term “proximal” refers to the direction opposite to that of “distal,” therefore away from the object. An electrically conductive coating 122 (e.g., chrome/gold plated coating) is disposed on the outer surface of the nonconductive tubing 116 and has conductive end 125 at the tip 114. An adhesive 124 (see FIG. 2A), preferably electrically conductive, such as a silver epoxy, is used to attach the distal end of the electrically conductive wire 120 to the distal end 115 of the hypodermic needle 110.

Furthermore, if desired, a chamber or reservoir can be connected to the lumen 118 for collection of the fluid that may conduct through the lumen. This chamber or reservoir can be a nonconductive bag, a syringe, other tubings connected to the lumen, and the like.

Such a hypodermic needle can be made by, for example, electroplating a polyimide tubing to deposit the electrically conductive coating on the polyimide tubing and inserting, for example, a tungsten wire into the polyimide tubing and affixing an end of the wire to the distal end of the hypodermic needle with a silver epoxy. The distal end can be sharpened after all the conductive materials are in place. The proximal end of the electrically conductive wire 120 and the proximal end of the electrically conductive coating 122 can be connected to the impedance sensor 104 in the apparatus 100, or other similar equipment for sensing the penetration depth of the hypodermic needle 110. Other suitable materials for making the electrically conductive coating include, for example, silver, nickel, platinum, titanium, and tungsten. Materials suitable for making the electrically conductive wire include, for example, silver, nickel, platinum, titanium, gold, copper, aluminum, and tungsten.

In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, a solid needle assembly 126 can be made by filling the lumen 127 of a hollow nonconductive needle 128 with a conductive material 130 and coating on the non-conductive needle with a metallic coating 132. The resultant elongated structure can be modified to produce a sharp tip. Alternatively, a non-conductive material can be coated on a stiff metallic wire and then an outer coat of conductive metal can be coated on the non-conductive material to form a solid needle. Such a needle will have a structure similar to that shown in FIG. 3, which shows a cross section of the shaft.

To further stiffen a needle shaft for penetration, the needle having conductors leading to the distal end can be further coated with a material that provides additional rigidity. Many hard materials, such as metals or alloys are known in the art. An example of a material suitable for providing such additional rigidity is titanium nitride.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of a hypodermic needle of the present invention. In the hypodermic needle 134 shown in FIG. 4, an inner electrically conductive tubing 136 with a lumen 138 has a coating of a non-conductive material 140 electrically insulating the inner tubing 136 from an electrically conductive coating 142 that is more remote from the axis. This hypodermic needle 134 can be made by coating, e.g., a steel needle with a non-conductive material and then sputtering a metallic coating on the electrically non-conductive material and fewer electroplating to form the outer electrically conductive coating 142.

FIGS. 5A (a side view) and 5B (a front view) show yet another embodiment in which a shaft suitable for inserting into the skin of a patient has conductors for sensing impedance of the tissue surrounding the tip of the shaft. The shaft 144 has a rectangular cross section (see the front view of FIG. 5B) and has a central part 146 made of a stiff non-conductive material extending lengthwise along the shaft 144 sandwiched between two conductors 148A and 148B. The central part has a sharp tip 148 leading into a sharp edge 150 for cutting into a skin. Such a shaft can be used as a lancet for cutting a wound in the skin to yield blood.

Mechanisms for Driving the Shaft

A wide variety of drivers can be used to drive the shaft (including needles, lancets, blades) of the present invention. Such drivers can be electrically controlled such that when the desired depth has been achieved, the driver can be stopped, preferably, automatically. In this way, the depth of penetration can be optimized so that minimal penetration is used to achieve the desired result, such as drawing blood from a patient with the infliction of a minimal amount of pain and wound size. Examples of mechanisms that can be used for the driver include pneumatic, electromechanical, and piezoelectric mechanisms.

FIG. 6A shows an apparatus with a driver for driving a shaft continually with a threaded mechanism. In the embodiment of FIG. 6A, the shaft 150 is affixed to a base 152 rigidly linked to a sleeve 154, which mates with a threaded rod 156. The threads of the sleeve 154 are so engaged with the threads of the threaded rod 156 such that the rotation of the threaded rod 156 will move the sleeve 154 along the threaded rod 156 axially. Therefore, a motor 158 that drives the rotation of threaded rod 156 in a direction (e.g. clockwise rotation) will drive the forward motion of the shaft 150 in the distal direction. Stopping the motor 158 will stop the forward advance of the shaft 150. Holding the motor 158 at a fixed position relative to the object to be penetrate and controlling the motor will control the depth of penetration of the shaft 150. Furthermore, the motor 158 can be driven to advance incrementally in an intermittent, stepwise fashion. If desired, the motor 158 can be operated to rotate in two directions to provide both forward and backward motion for advancing and withdrawing the shaft 150.

FIG. 6B illustrates another embodiment in which the shaft can be driven to advance continually. In this embodiment, a shaft 150 (e.g., a needle) is affixed to a base 160. The base 160 (and therefore the shaft 150) is driven to move in the forward, i.e., distal, direction by a rotor 162A that engages the base 160 on the side such that rotating the rotor 162A will move the base 160 and shaft 150 distally. The rotor 162A is driven by the a motor 164. Another rotor 162B engages the base 160 on a side opposite that of the rotor 162A for support. Either rotor 162A or rotor 162B can be an idler rotor. The rotors 162A and 162B can engage the base 160 by means of gears or by friction.

FIG. 7A shows an embodiment of a shaft-penetration apparatus of the present invention with reciprocative action for inserting the shaft into a body. A shaft 150 is affixed to a link 166 actuated by linking arms 168A, 168B. The linking arms 168A and 168B are pivotably connected to each other. The linking arm 168B is pivotably connected off center to the rotor 170, which in turn is driven by motor 172. Thus, the rotation of the rotor 170 results in a back and forth reciprocative movement of the linking arms 168A, 168B, which is translated to the shaft 150. In addition, the whole system can be move steadily forward distally to advance the shaft 150 distally.

FIG. 7B shows an embodiment of a spring mechanism 174 that can be used, e.g., as the link 166. The shaft 150, supported on a base 152 is held by the spring mechanism 174, which consists of a primary spring coil 176A and a secondary spring coil 176B. The primary spring coil 176A and secondary spring coil 176B are each held at one end by a ledge 178 of a housing 180, which houses the spring coils and part of the base 152. An end disk 177 is disposed at the proximal end of the spring coils 176A, 176B and affixed to the base 152 by a rigid rod 179 that extends through the axis of the spring coils 176A, 176B. A hammer 181 (shown in portion) can be used to impact the end disk 177, which drives the shaft 150 forward by means of rigid rod 179. After the impact, the springs 176A and 176B can move the shaft backward. It is noted that one of the springs 176A and 176B is optional and an alternative is to use only one of them.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a piezoelectric driver 182 for producing a reciprocative motion to drive a shaft for penetration. As in the aforementioned embodiments, a shaft 150 is affixed to a base 152, which is attached to a piezoelectric vibrator 184. When energized electrically, the piezoelectric vibrator 184 will vibrate to move the base 152 and the shaft 150 in a forward-backward motion. This whole vibrating driver system 182 can be advanced forward. Technique for making and using piezoelectric vibrators are known in the art and can be easily adopted for driving a shaft based on the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 shows a fluid mechanism for driving a reciprocative motion for driving a shaft. Here, a shaft 150 is attached to a piston 186 that is allowed to slide inside a chamber (shown in the figure including the chamber 187A, chamber 187B and the volume occupied by the piston 186) in a piston housing 188. A distal fluid conduit 190 distal to the piston 186 allows a fluid to enter the chamber 187B to drive the piston proximally, i.e., in a direction opposite to the distal direction. At the same time, preferably, a proximal fluid conduit inlet 192 proximal to the piston 186 can allow fluid to escape to facilitate the movement of the piston without building excessive pressure in the chamber 187A. Conversely, the proximal fluid conduit 192 can allow fluid to enter the chamber 187A to drive the piston distally while the distal fluid conduit 190 allows fluid to escape. A common fluid inlet conduit 194, connected to a multi-way valve 196 (e.g., three-way valve) can allow fluid to enter the proximal fluid conduit 192 or distal fluid conduit 190. Alternately admitting fluid into the chamber 187 proximal and distal to the piston while at the same time releasing fluid on the opposite side of the chamber will result in a reciprocative motion. To effect a progressive advance of the shaft 150 at the distal direction, over time, more fluid can enter the proximal conduit 192 than the distal fluid conduit 190. Optionally, one or both of the chambers 187A and 187B can be kept close to the environmental pressure so as to not put too much stress on the structure of the mechanism. Alternatively, the whole mechanism shown in FIG. 9 can be advanced while it is reciprocatively moving. A gas or a liquid can be used as the fluid for entering the chamber 187 to drive the progressive movement of the shaft 150.

The present invention can also find application in which the shaft advances in a sawing action, as that described in a copending application (Attorney Docket Number 10971004-1, Inventors: Ganapati Mauze, et al., entitled “APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR INCISING”) submitted on the same day and assigned to the same assignee as the present application. Said copending application is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein. An example of such all apparatus has an elongated structure for conducting blood with an outer tube and an inner tube. The tubes associated with each other in concentric, close proximity with low friction between them so that one can slide on the other freely. The distal ends of the tubes each has a circular sharp cutting edge. The tubes are driven to move longitudinally reciprocatively such that alternately the sharp ring-shaped end of the outer tube is more distal than the end of the inner tube and the sharp ring-shaped end of the inner tube is more distal than the end of the outer tube. In this way, the elongated structure can penetrate the tissue by a sawing action by the two tubes.

The driving mechanism for driving the shaft (e.g., needle, lancet, and the like) of the present invention can be controlled by feedback electronics circuits that inhibit further shaft penetration once a proper depth of fluid material has been sensed. Typically, such a control system would be placed in the processor shown in FIG. 1. A control algorithm for such a control-system is illustrated by an exemplary flow diagram shown in FIG. 10. In this algorithm, once initiated, the driver will move the shaft one step at a time to advance an incremental distance until either the impedance measured indicate that the shaft has reach the target area (e.g. blood in capillary bed by a needle penetrating skin) or until the predetermined depth of penetration has been reached, at which point the driver will be stopped by the control circuitry. Whether the proper depth has been reached by the shaft can be determined by the magnitude of the change in impedance or the magnitude of the impedance itself. The selection of impedance values or jump values can be done by one skilled in the art. A processor can be provided external to the object that is being penetrated by the shaft for gathering and processing the impedance information to determine whether the desired depth has been achieved, as well as to control the movement of the shaft. Electrical devices and electrical circuits for processing information, controlling drivers, as well as those for sensing electrical impedance are known in the art. Such devices and circuits could include computers or microprocessors.

To use the apparatus of the present for the optimal benefit, preferably, the change in impedance with the depth of penetration is determined experimentally. After a few times of sampling, the apparatus can be adjusted to set the depth of insertion in relation to impedance changes to fit the particular preferences (e.g., penetration depth and sample volume) of that individual. Another way would be to obtain impedance data versus depth specifically for an individual patient and, after taking data from a plurality of blood samples, use the resultant data for setting the depth of penetration for future blood samples.

Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail, it is to be understood that a person skilled in the art can make modifications within the scope of the invention. For example, it is understood that the present invention can be applied in a wide variety of medical or nonmedical areas, e.g., drilling in the ground for water, gas, petroleum, etc.

Claims

1. A tissue penetrating device for sampling body fluid from a patient and for use with a penetrating member, the device comprising:

an electrical driver coupled to provide force that moves said penetrating member along a path into the tissue;
a sensing device for use in controlling motion of the penetrating member to penetrate the skin of the patient to a desired depth of penetration that is sufficient to create a wound from which blood flows from the wound and into an interior of the tissue penetrating device for blood analysis without flowing through the penetrating member for blood analysis with reduced patient discomfort from the creation of the wound;
a controller electrically coupled to the electrical driver and configured to receive a signal from the sensing device to control the electrical driver and a motion of the penetrating member;
an electronic feedback loop circuit in electrical communication with the sensing device, the electrical driver and the sensing device configured to control a motion of the penetrating member; and
wherein the electrical driver is used to stop the penetrating member in the tissue.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the electronic feedback loop circuit in electrical communication with the sensing device and the controller inhibits penetrating member penetration once a penetration depth of the penetrating member has been sensed by the sensing device.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the electrical driver includes a motor.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein the controller includes a microprocessor.

5. The device of claim 1 wherein the controller has logic for directing the electrical driver to provide force to drive the penetrating member into tissue and to provide force to withdraw the penetrating member from tissue.

6. The device of claim 1 wherein the penetrating member comprises a non-hollow, elongate member.

7. The device of claim 1 wherein the controller has logic for directing the electrical driver to provide force to drive the penetrating member into tissue and to provide force to withdraw the penetrating member from tissue.

8. A method of lancing the tissue of a patient using a tissue penetrating device, comprising:

providing a penetrating member device comprising, an electrical driver coupled to provide force to a penetrating member;
activating the electrical driver;
driving the penetrating member into the tissue of a patient, wherein the electrical driver provides force to move said penetrating member into the tissue;
using a controller electrically coupled to the electrical driver to control a motion of the penetrating member;
sensing the depth of penetration of the penetrating member after the penetrating member has been driven into the patient's tissue with the sensing device and controlling the activation of the electrical driver with the controller based on the depth of penetration of the penetrating member;
using the electrical driver to stop the penetrating member in the tissue, and
using the electrical driver to withdraw the penetrating member from the tissue.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

obtaining the body fluid sample, wherein the sample is obtained only by removing the penetrating member from the tissue.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the penetrating member comprises a non-hollow, elongate member.

11. A method of sampling blood from a patient, the method comprising:

providing a tissue penetrating device that includes, an electrical driver coupled to a penetrating member, the electrical driver for providing drive force, a controller electrically coupled to the electrical driver, and
an electronic feedback loop circuit in electrical communication with a sensing device, the electrical driver and the sensing device configured to control a motion of the penetrating member, wherein motion of the penetrating member results in motion of at least one component of the sensing device relative to a housing;
activating the electrical driver;
driving the penetrating member through the skin surface of a patient into the patient's tissue;
sensing a depth of penetration of the penetrating member after the penetrating member has been driven into the patient's tissue; and
controlling activation of the electrical driver in response to a depth of penetration of the penetrating member determined with the sensing device member to penetrate the skin of the patient to a desired depth of penetration that is sufficient to create a wound patient's tissue;
sensing a depth of penetration of the penetrating member after the penetrating member has been driven into the patient's tissue; and
controlling activation of the electrical driver in response to a depth of penetration of the penetrating member determined with the sensing device member to penetrate the skin of the patient to a desired depth of penetration that is sufficient to create a wound from which blood flows from the wound without flowing through the penetrating member and into an interior of the tissue penetrating device for blood analysis with reduced patient discomfort from the creation of the wound;
wherein the electrical drive is used to stop the penetrating member in the tissue.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

obtaining the body fluid sample, wherein the sample is obtained only by removing the penetrating member from the tissue.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein the penetrating member comprises a non-hollow, elongate member.

14. The method of claim 1 further comprising using the electrical driver to stop the penetrating member in the tissue.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising using the electrical driver to withdraw the penetrating member from the tissue.

Referenced Cited
U.S. Patent Documents
2714890 August 1955 Vang
2763935 September 1956 Whaley et al.
3086288 April 1963 Balamuth et al.
3208452 September 1965 Stern
3358689 December 1967 Higgins
3494358 February 1970 Grossenbacher
3626929 December 1971 Sanz
3673475 June 1972 Britton, Jr.
3742954 July 1973 Strickland
3832776 September 1974 Sawyer
3953172 April 27, 1976 Shapiro
4077406 March 7, 1978 Sandhage et al.
4154228 May 15, 1979 Feldstein et al.
4191193 March 4, 1980 Seo
4203446 May 20, 1980 Höfert et al.
4223674 September 23, 1980 Fluent et al.
4224125 September 23, 1980 Nakamura
4230118 October 28, 1980 Holman et al.
4299230 November 10, 1981 Kubota
4340669 July 20, 1982 Bauer
4353984 October 12, 1982 Yamada
4356826 November 2, 1982 Kubota
4360016 November 23, 1982 Sarrine
4391905 July 5, 1983 Bauer
4391906 July 5, 1983 Bauer
4414975 November 15, 1983 Ryder
4426451 January 17, 1984 Columbus
4426884 January 24, 1984 Polchaninoff
4449529 May 22, 1984 Burns et al.
4462405 July 31, 1984 Ehrlich
4469110 September 4, 1984 Slama
4517978 May 21, 1985 Levin
4518384 May 21, 1985 Tarello et al.
4535773 August 20, 1985 Yoon
4539988 September 10, 1985 Shirley
4545382 October 8, 1985 Higgins
4553541 November 19, 1985 Burns
4577630 March 25, 1986 Nitzsche
4580564 April 8, 1986 Andersen
4580565 April 8, 1986 Cornell
4595479 June 17, 1986 Kimura
4608997 September 2, 1986 Conway
4615340 October 7, 1986 Cronenberg
4616649 October 14, 1986 Burns
4619754 October 28, 1986 Niki
4622974 November 18, 1986 Coleman
4624253 November 25, 1986 Burns
4627445 December 9, 1986 Garcia et al.
4637393 January 20, 1987 Ray
4637403 January 20, 1987 Garcia et al.
4643189 February 17, 1987 Mintz
4648408 March 10, 1987 Hutcheson
4653511 March 31, 1987 Goch
4653513 March 31, 1987 Dombrowski
4674503 June 23, 1987 Peyman et al.
4676244 June 30, 1987 Enstrom
4677979 July 7, 1987 Burns
4711245 December 8, 1987 Higgins
4712548 December 15, 1987 Enstrom
4715374 December 29, 1987 Maggio
4735203 April 5, 1988 Ryder
4750489 June 14, 1988 Berkman et al.
4757022 July 12, 1988 Shults et al.
4787398 November 29, 1988 Garcia et al.
4794926 January 3, 1989 Munsch et al.
RE32922 May 16, 1989 Levin
4814142 March 21, 1989 Gleisner
4814661 March 21, 1989 Ratzlaff
4820010 April 11, 1989 Scifres
4820399 April 11, 1989 Senda
4823806 April 25, 1989 Bajada
4824639 April 25, 1989 Hildenbrand
4825711 May 2, 1989 Jensen et al.
4827763 May 9, 1989 Bourland
4830959 May 16, 1989 McNeil
4836904 June 6, 1989 Armstron
4844095 July 4, 1989 Chiodo
4850973 July 25, 1989 Jordan
4857274 August 15, 1989 Simon
4869249 September 26, 1989 Crossman
4869265 September 26, 1989 McEwen
4873993 October 17, 1989 Meserol
4882013 November 21, 1989 Turner
4883068 November 28, 1989 Dechow
4889529 December 26, 1989 Haindl
4892097 January 9, 1990 Ranalletta
4895147 January 23, 1990 Bodicky
4897173 January 30, 1990 Nankai
4900424 February 13, 1990 Birch
4911794 March 27, 1990 Parce
4920977 May 1, 1990 Haynes
4924879 May 15, 1990 O'Brien
4940468 July 10, 1990 Petillo
4945045 July 31, 1990 Forrest
4948727 August 14, 1990 Cass
4952515 August 28, 1990 Gleisner
4953552 September 4, 1990 DeMarzo
4966671 October 30, 1990 Nylander
4976724 December 11, 1990 Nieto
4983178 January 8, 1991 Schnell
4990154 February 5, 1991 Brown
4995402 February 26, 1991 Smith et al.
5010772 April 30, 1991 Bourland
5010774 April 30, 1991 Kikuo
5014718 May 14, 1991 Mitchen
5026388 June 25, 1991 Ingalz
5029583 July 9, 1991 Meserol et al.
5035704 July 30, 1991 Lambert et al.
5047044 September 10, 1991 Smith et al.
5054499 October 8, 1991 Swierczek
5059789 October 22, 1991 Salcudean
5060174 October 22, 1991 Gross
5070886 December 10, 1991 Mitchen
5074872 December 24, 1991 Brown
5089112 February 18, 1992 Skotheim
5092842 March 3, 1992 Bechtold
5097810 March 24, 1992 Fishman et al.
5100427 March 31, 1992 Crossman
5100428 March 31, 1992 Mumford
5104380 April 14, 1992 Holman
5104619 April 14, 1992 Castro
5108564 April 28, 1992 Szuminsky
5116759 May 26, 1992 Klainer
5120420 June 9, 1992 Nankai
5122244 June 16, 1992 Hoenes
5126034 June 30, 1992 Carter
5128015 July 7, 1992 Szuminsky
5128171 July 7, 1992 Gleisner
5133730 July 28, 1992 Biro
5139685 August 18, 1992 Castro
5141868 August 25, 1992 Shanks
5145565 September 8, 1992 Kater et al.
5152775 October 6, 1992 Ruppert
5156611 October 20, 1992 Haynes
5163442 November 17, 1992 Ono
5170364 December 8, 1992 Gross
D332490 January 12, 1993 Brown
5185256 February 9, 1993 Nankai
5187100 February 16, 1993 Matzinger
5188118 February 23, 1993 Terwilliger
5189751 March 2, 1993 Giuliani et al.
5192415 March 9, 1993 Yoshioka
5196025 March 23, 1993 Ranalletta
5201324 April 13, 1993 Swierczek
5205920 April 27, 1993 Oyama
5212879 May 25, 1993 Biro
5217480 June 8, 1993 Haber
5222504 June 29, 1993 Solomon
5229282 July 20, 1993 Yoshioka
5230866 July 27, 1993 Shartle
5231993 August 3, 1993 Haber et al.
5249583 October 5, 1993 Mallaby
5250066 October 5, 1993 Lambert
5253656 October 19, 1993 Rincoe
5256998 October 26, 1993 Becker
5264103 November 23, 1993 Yoshioka
5264105 November 23, 1993 Gregg
5264106 November 23, 1993 McAleer
5266179 November 30, 1993 Nankai
D342573 December 21, 1993 Cerola
5272087 December 21, 1993 El Murr
5279294 January 18, 1994 Anderson et al.
5282822 February 1, 1994 Macors
5286362 February 15, 1994 Hoenes
5286364 February 15, 1994 Yacynych
5288636 February 22, 1994 Pollmann
5304192 April 19, 1994 Crouse
5304193 April 19, 1994 Zhadanov
5312590 May 17, 1994 Gunasingham
5314441 May 24, 1994 Cusack
5314442 May 24, 1994 Morita
5316012 May 31, 1994 Siegal
5318583 June 7, 1994 Rabenau et al.
5320607 June 14, 1994 Ishibashi
5320808 June 14, 1994 Holen et al.
5324302 June 28, 1994 Crouse
5324303 June 28, 1994 Strong
5332479 July 26, 1994 Uenoyama
5350392 September 27, 1994 Purcell
5354287 October 11, 1994 Wacks
5354447 October 11, 1994 Uenoyama
5356420 October 18, 1994 Czernecki
5360410 November 1, 1994 Wacks
5366469 November 22, 1994 Steg
5366470 November 22, 1994 Ramel
5366609 November 22, 1994 White
5368047 November 29, 1994 Suzuki et al.
5375397 December 27, 1994 Ferrand
5378628 January 3, 1995 Gratzel
5382346 January 17, 1995 Uenoyama
5383885 January 24, 1995 Bland
5389534 February 14, 1995 Gentezkow
5393903 February 28, 1995 Graetzel
5395387 March 7, 1995 Burns
5397334 March 14, 1995 Schenk
5401376 March 28, 1995 Foos
5402798 April 4, 1995 Swierczek
5407545 April 18, 1995 Hirose
5407554 April 18, 1995 Saurer
5407818 April 18, 1995 Gentezkow
5409583 April 25, 1995 Yoshioka
5410059 April 25, 1995 Fraser
5415169 May 16, 1995 Siczek et al.
5423847 June 13, 1995 Strong et al.
5436161 July 25, 1995 Bergstrom
5437999 August 1, 1995 Diebold
5443701 August 22, 1995 Willner
5445920 August 29, 1995 Saito
D362719 September 26, 1995 Kaplan
5454828 October 3, 1995 Schraga
5456875 October 10, 1995 Lambert
5460182 October 24, 1995 Goodman et al.
5464418 November 7, 1995 Schraga
5471102 November 28, 1995 Becker
5472427 December 5, 1995 Rammler
5474084 December 12, 1995 Cunniff
5476474 December 19, 1995 Davis
5480387 January 2, 1996 Gabriel
5487748 January 30, 1996 Marshall
5496453 March 5, 1996 Uenoyama
5498542 March 12, 1996 Corey
5509410 April 23, 1996 Hill
5510266 April 23, 1996 Bonner et al.
5510366 April 23, 1996 Bonner et al.
5512159 April 30, 1996 Yoshioka
5514152 May 7, 1996 Smith
5518006 May 21, 1996 Mawhirt
5524636 June 11, 1996 Sarvazyan
5525511 June 11, 1996 D'Costa
5527333 June 18, 1996 Nikkels
5527334 June 18, 1996 Kanner
5529074 June 25, 1996 Greenfield
5540709 July 30, 1996 Ramel
5543326 August 6, 1996 Heller
5545174 August 13, 1996 Schenk
5547702 August 20, 1996 Gleisner
5554166 September 10, 1996 Lange
5558834 September 24, 1996 Chu
5569286 October 29, 1996 Peckham
5569287 October 29, 1996 Tezuka
5571132 November 5, 1996 Mawhirt
5575403 November 19, 1996 Charlton et al.
5575895 November 19, 1996 Ikeda
5582697 December 10, 1996 Ikeda
5584846 December 17, 1996 Mawhirt
5593852 January 14, 1997 Heller
5609749 March 11, 1997 Yamauchi
5613978 March 25, 1997 Harding
5620279 April 15, 1997 Furusawa
5624537 April 29, 1997 Turner
D379516 May 27, 1997 Rutter
5628764 May 13, 1997 Schraga
5628765 May 13, 1997 Morita
5628890 May 13, 1997 Carter
5630986 May 20, 1997 Charlton et al.
5632410 May 27, 1997 Moulton et al.
5643306 July 1, 1997 Schraga
5645555 July 8, 1997 Davis
5650062 July 22, 1997 Ikeda
5653863 August 5, 1997 Genshaw
5657760 August 19, 1997 Ying et al.
5658444 August 19, 1997 Black
5662127 September 2, 1997 De Vaughn
5662672 September 2, 1997 Pambianchi
5680872 October 28, 1997 Sesekura
5682884 November 4, 1997 Hill
5683562 November 4, 1997 Schaffar
5695947 December 9, 1997 Guo
5700695 December 23, 1997 Yassinzadeh et al.
5705045 January 6, 1998 Park et al.
5708247 January 13, 1998 McAleer
5709668 January 20, 1998 Wacks
5710011 January 20, 1998 Forrow
5714390 February 3, 1998 Hallowitz et al.
5720862 February 24, 1998 Hamamoto
5720924 February 24, 1998 Eikmeier et al.
D392391 March 17, 1998 Douglas
5723284 March 3, 1998 Ye
5727548 March 17, 1998 Hill
5730753 March 24, 1998 Morita
5733300 March 31, 1998 Pambianchi
D393716 April 21, 1998 Brenneman
D393717 April 21, 1998 Brenneman
5735868 April 7, 1998 Lee
5738244 April 14, 1998 Charlton et al.
5741634 April 21, 1998 Nozoe
RE35803 May 19, 1998 Lange
5746217 May 5, 1998 Erickson
5755733 May 26, 1998 Morita
5758643 June 2, 1998 Wong et al.
5759364 June 2, 1998 Charlton
5762770 June 9, 1998 Pritchard
5770369 June 23, 1998 Meade
5772586 June 30, 1998 Heinonen
5772677 June 30, 1998 Mawhirt
5773270 June 30, 1998 D'Orazio
5776157 July 7, 1998 Thorne et al.
5776719 July 7, 1998 Douglas
5782770 July 21, 1998 Mooradian
5782852 July 21, 1998 Foggia
5788651 August 4, 1998 Weilandt
5788652 August 4, 1998 Rahn
5795725 August 18, 1998 Buechler
5795774 August 18, 1998 Matsumoto
5797940 August 25, 1998 Mawhirt
5797942 August 25, 1998 Schraga
5798030 August 25, 1998 Raguse
5798031 August 25, 1998 Charlton
5800781 September 1, 1998 Gavin et al.
5801057 September 1, 1998 Smart et al.
5810199 September 22, 1998 Charlton et al.
8800781 August 12, 2014 Gavin
5820551 October 13, 1998 Hill
5823973 October 20, 1998 Racchini et al.
5824491 October 20, 1998 Priest
5830219 November 3, 1998 Bird et al.
5840020 November 24, 1998 Heinonen
5840171 November 24, 1998 Birch
5846490 December 8, 1998 Yokota et al.
5849174 December 15, 1998 Sanghera
5854074 December 29, 1998 Charlton et al.
D403975 January 12, 1999 Douglas
5855801 January 5, 1999 Lin et al.
5857983 January 12, 1999 Douglas
5860922 January 19, 1999 Gordon
5863800 January 26, 1999 Eikmeier et al.
5866353 February 2, 1999 Berneth
5868772 February 9, 1999 LeVaughn
5869972 February 9, 1999 Birch
5871494 February 16, 1999 Simons et al.
5872713 February 16, 1999 Douglas
5873887 February 23, 1999 King
5876957 March 2, 1999 Douglas
5879311 March 9, 1999 Duchon et al.
5879373 March 9, 1999 Roeper
5880829 March 9, 1999 Kauhaniemi et al.
5882494 March 16, 1999 van Antwerp
5885211 March 23, 1999 Eppstein et al.
5891053 April 6, 1999 Sesekura
5893848 April 13, 1999 Negus et al.
5900130 May 4, 1999 Benvegnu
5906921 May 25, 1999 Ikeda
D411619 June 29, 1999 Duchon
5916156 June 29, 1999 Hildenbrand
5916229 June 29, 1999 Evans
5916230 June 29, 1999 Brenneman
5921963 July 13, 1999 Erez
5922188 July 13, 1999 Ikeda
RE36268 August 17, 1999 Szuminsky
5935075 August 10, 1999 Casscells
5938679 August 17, 1999 Freeman et al.
5951492 September 14, 1999 Douglas
5951582 September 14, 1999 Thorne et al.
5951836 September 14, 1999 McAleer
5954738 September 21, 1999 LeVaughn
5958199 September 28, 1999 Miyamoto
5965380 October 12, 1999 Heller
5968063 October 19, 1999 Chu et al.
5971941 October 26, 1999 Simons et al.
5972199 October 26, 1999 Heller
5983193 November 9, 1999 Heinonen
5985116 November 16, 1999 Ikeda
5993400 November 30, 1999 Rincoe
5997561 December 7, 1999 Böcker et al.
5997817 December 7, 1999 Crismore
5997818 December 7, 1999 Hackner
6001067 December 14, 1999 Shults
6020110 February 1, 2000 Williams
6022324 February 8, 2000 Skinner
6022366 February 8, 2000 Schraga
6027459 February 22, 2000 Shain et al.
6030399 February 29, 2000 Ignotz
6030827 February 29, 2000 Davis
6033421 March 7, 2000 Theiss
6033866 March 7, 2000 Guo
6036924 March 14, 2000 Simons et al.
6048352 April 11, 2000 Douglas et al.
D424696 May 9, 2000 Ray
6060327 May 9, 2000 Keen
6063039 May 16, 2000 Cunningham et al.
6066296 May 23, 2000 Brady
6067463 May 23, 2000 Jeng
D426638 June 13, 2000 Ray
6071249 June 6, 2000 Cunningham et al.
6071250 June 6, 2000 Douglas
6071251 June 6, 2000 Cunningham et al.
6071294 June 6, 2000 Simons et al.
6074360 June 13, 2000 Haar et al.
6077408 June 20, 2000 Miyamoto
6080172 June 27, 2000 Fujiwara
6083710 July 4, 2000 Heller
6086562 July 11, 2000 Jacobsen
6093156 July 25, 2000 Cunningham et al.
6103033 August 15, 2000 Say
6107083 August 22, 2000 Collins
6117630 September 12, 2000 Reber et al.
6120462 September 19, 2000 Hibner et al.
6120676 September 19, 2000 Heller
6121009 September 19, 2000 Heller
6129823 October 10, 2000 Hughes
6132449 October 17, 2000 Lum et al.
6133837 October 17, 2000 Riley
6134461 October 17, 2000 Say
6136013 October 24, 2000 Marshall et al.
6139562 October 31, 2000 Mauze et al.
6143164 November 7, 2000 Heller et al.
6152942 November 28, 2000 Brenneman et al.
6153069 November 28, 2000 Pottgen
RE36991 December 19, 2000 Yamamoto
6155992 December 5, 2000 Henning et al.
6156051 December 5, 2000 Schraga
6157442 December 5, 2000 Raskas
6159424 December 12, 2000 Kauhaniemi et al.
6162611 December 19, 2000 Heller
6171325 January 9, 2001 Mauze et al.
6175752 January 16, 2001 Say
6176865 January 23, 2001 Mauze et al.
6177000 January 23, 2001 Peterson
6183489 February 6, 2001 Douglas et al.
6190612 February 20, 2001 Berger
6191852 February 20, 2001 Paffhausen
6192891 February 27, 2001 Gravel
6193673 February 27, 2001 Viola et al.
6194900 February 27, 2001 Freeman
6197257 March 6, 2001 Raskas
6203504 March 20, 2001 Latterell et al.
6206841 March 27, 2001 Cunningham et al.
6210420 April 3, 2001 Mauze et al.
6210421 April 3, 2001 Böcker et al.
6212417 April 3, 2001 Ikeda
6214804 April 10, 2001 Felgner
6221238 April 24, 2001 Grundig
6225078 May 1, 2001 Ikeda
6228100 May 8, 2001 Schraga
6230501 May 15, 2001 Bailey
6231531 May 15, 2001 Lum et al.
6241862 June 5, 2001 McAleer
6245060 June 12, 2001 Loomis
6251260 June 26, 2001 Heller
6254831 July 3, 2001 Barnard
6256533 July 3, 2001 Yuzhakov
6258229 July 10, 2001 Winarta
6258254 July 10, 2001 Miyamoto
6261241 July 17, 2001 Burbank et al.
6261245 July 17, 2001 Kawai et al.
6268161 July 31, 2001 Han
6270637 August 7, 2001 Crismore
6272359 August 7, 2001 Kivela
6281006 August 28, 2001 Heller
6283926 September 4, 2001 Cunningham et al.
6283982 September 4, 2001 Levaughn
6284478 September 4, 2001 Heller
6285448 September 4, 2001 Kuenstner
6285454 September 4, 2001 Douglas et al.
6290683 September 18, 2001 Erez
6295506 September 25, 2001 Heinonen
6299757 October 9, 2001 Feldman
6302855 October 16, 2001 Lav
6306104 October 23, 2001 Cunningham et al.
6306152 October 23, 2001 Verdonk et al.
6306347 October 23, 2001 Mason
6309535 October 30, 2001 Williams
6312612 November 6, 2001 Sherman
6315738 November 13, 2001 Nishikawa et al.
6319210 November 20, 2001 Douglas et al.
6322574 November 27, 2001 Lloyd
6331163 December 18, 2001 Kaplan
6332871 December 25, 2001 Douglas et al.
6334363 January 1, 2002 Testud
6334856 January 1, 2002 Allen
6338790 January 15, 2002 Feldman
6350273 February 26, 2002 Minagawa
6350451 February 26, 2002 Horn
6352514 March 5, 2002 Douglas et al.
6352523 March 5, 2002 Brown
6353753 March 5, 2002 Flock
6364889 April 2, 2002 Kheiri et al.
6364890 April 2, 2002 Lum et al.
6375627 April 23, 2002 Mauze et al.
6379301 April 30, 2002 WOrthington
6379317 April 30, 2002 Kintzig et al.
6379324 April 30, 2002 Gartstein
6379969 April 30, 2002 Mauze et al.
6387709 May 14, 2002 Mason
6391005 May 21, 2002 Lum et al.
6399394 June 4, 2002 Dahm
6402701 June 11, 2002 Kaplan et al.
6402704 June 11, 2002 McMorrow
6409740 June 25, 2002 Kuhr et al.
6413410 July 2, 2002 Hodges
6413411 July 2, 2002 Pottgen
6421633 July 16, 2002 Heinonen
6428664 August 6, 2002 Bhullar
6436256 August 20, 2002 Williams
6436721 August 20, 2002 Kuo
6440645 August 27, 2002 Yon-Hin
6451040 September 17, 2002 Purcell
6458258 October 1, 2002 Taniike
6461496 October 8, 2002 Feldman et al.
6462162 October 8, 2002 van Antwerp
6471903 October 29, 2002 Sherman
6472220 October 29, 2002 Simons et al.
6475436 November 5, 2002 Schabbach
6475750 November 5, 2002 Han
6484046 November 19, 2002 Say
6485439 November 26, 2002 Roe et al.
6488891 December 3, 2002 Mason et al.
6491709 December 10, 2002 Sharma et al.
6497845 December 24, 2002 Sacherer
6501404 December 31, 2002 Walker
6503210 January 7, 2003 Hirao et al.
6503231 January 7, 2003 Prausnitz
6506168 January 14, 2003 Fathallah et al.
6506575 January 14, 2003 Knappe et al.
6508785 January 21, 2003 Eppstein
6514270 February 4, 2003 Schraga
6514460 February 4, 2003 Fendrock
6519241 February 11, 2003 Theimer
6520326 February 18, 2003 McIvor
6527778 March 4, 2003 Athanasiou
6530892 March 11, 2003 Kelly
6530937 March 11, 2003 Schraga
6533949 March 18, 2003 Yeshurun
6537242 March 25, 2003 Palmer
6537292 March 25, 2003 Lee
6540672 April 1, 2003 Simonsen
6540675 April 1, 2003 Aceti
6540762 April 1, 2003 Bertling
6540891 April 1, 2003 Stewart
6547954 April 15, 2003 Ikeda
6549796 April 15, 2003 Sohrab
6551494 April 22, 2003 Feldman
6555061 April 29, 2003 Leong
6558361 May 6, 2003 Yeshurun
6558402 May 6, 2003 Chelak
6558528 May 6, 2003 Matzinger
6561989 May 13, 2003 Whitson
6565808 May 20, 2003 Hudak
6569157 May 27, 2003 Shain
6571651 June 3, 2003 Hodges
6572566 June 3, 2003 Effenhauser
6574490 June 3, 2003 Abbink
6576101 June 10, 2003 Heller
6576416 June 10, 2003 Haviland
6579690 June 17, 2003 Bonnecaze et al.
6587705 July 1, 2003 Kim
6589260 July 8, 2003 Schmelzeisen-R
6589261 July 8, 2003 Abulhaj
6591125 July 8, 2003 Buse
6592745 July 15, 2003 Feldman
6599407 July 29, 2003 Taniike
6599693 July 29, 2003 Webb
6602205 August 5, 2003 Erickson
6602268 August 5, 2003 Kuhr
6602678 August 5, 2003 Kwon
6607658 August 19, 2003 Heller
6616616 September 9, 2003 Fritz
6616819 September 9, 2003 Liamos
6618934 September 16, 2003 Feldman
6620112 September 16, 2003 Klitmose
6623501 September 23, 2003 Heller
6626851 September 30, 2003 Hirao
6635222 October 21, 2003 Kent
6641533 November 4, 2003 Causey
6645368 November 11, 2003 Beaty
6652720 November 25, 2003 Mansouri
6656702 December 2, 2003 Yugawa
6659966 December 9, 2003 Essenpreis
6660018 December 9, 2003 Lum
6671527 December 30, 2003 Petersson
6679841 January 20, 2004 Bojan
6679852 January 20, 2004 Schmelzeisen-redeker et al.
6706000 March 16, 2004 Perez
6706159 March 16, 2004 Moerman
6706232 March 16, 2004 Hasegawa
6713660 March 30, 2004 Roe
6719887 April 13, 2004 Hasegawa
6723111 April 20, 2004 Abulhaj
6723371 April 20, 2004 Chih-hui
6723500 April 20, 2004 Yu
6726818 April 27, 2004 Cui et al.
6733493 May 11, 2004 Gruzdev
6736777 May 18, 2004 Kim
6740215 May 25, 2004 Yamamoto
6743211 June 1, 2004 PraUSnitz
6749792 June 15, 2004 Olson
6751491 June 15, 2004 Lew
6752817 June 22, 2004 Flora
6759190 July 6, 2004 Lin
6764496 July 20, 2004 Schraga
6764581 July 20, 2004 Forrow
6767441 July 27, 2004 Cai
6773671 August 10, 2004 Lewis
6776888 August 17, 2004 Yamamoto
6780645 August 24, 2004 Hayter
6780647 August 24, 2004 Fujiwara
6783502 August 31, 2004 Orloff
6783537 August 31, 2004 Kuhr
6784274 August 31, 2004 van Antwerp
6786874 September 7, 2004 Grace
6787013 September 7, 2004 Chang
6787109 September 7, 2004 Haar
6790327 September 14, 2004 Nankai
6790599 September 14, 2004 Madou
6792791 September 21, 2004 Sato
6793632 September 21, 2004 Sohrab
6793633 September 21, 2004 Douglas
6793802 September 21, 2004 Lee
6797150 September 28, 2004 Kermani
6800488 October 5, 2004 Khan
6801041 October 5, 2004 Karinka
6801804 October 5, 2004 Miller
6802199 October 12, 2004 Hilgers
6802811 October 12, 2004 Slepian
6802957 October 12, 2004 Jung
6805780 October 19, 2004 Ryu
6808908 October 26, 2004 Yao
6808937 October 26, 2004 Ligler
6809807 October 26, 2004 Erickson
6811557 November 2, 2004 Schraga
6811659 November 2, 2004 Vachon
6811753 November 2, 2004 Hirao
6811792 November 2, 2004 Roser
6812031 November 2, 2004 Carlsson
6814843 November 9, 2004 Bhullar
6814844 November 9, 2004 Bhullar
6814845 November 9, 2004 Wilson
6815186 November 9, 2004 Clark
6816742 November 9, 2004 Kim
6818180 November 16, 2004 Douglas
6821483 November 23, 2004 Phillips
6823750 November 30, 2004 Hodges
6825047 November 30, 2004 Woudenberg
6827250 December 7, 2004 Uhland
6827829 December 7, 2004 Kawanaka
6830551 December 14, 2004 Uchigaki
6830668 December 14, 2004 Musho
6830669 December 14, 2004 Miyazaki
6833540 December 21, 2004 MacKenzie
6835184 December 28, 2004 Sage
6835553 December 28, 2004 Han
6837858 January 4, 2005 Cunningham et al.
6837976 January 4, 2005 Cai
6837988 January 4, 2005 Leong
6840912 January 11, 2005 Kloepfer
6841052 January 11, 2005 Musho
6843254 January 18, 2005 Tapper
6847451 January 25, 2005 Pugh
6849052 February 1, 2005 Uchigaki
6849168 February 1, 2005 Crumly
6849216 February 1, 2005 Rappin
6850790 February 1, 2005 Berner
20010017269 August 30, 2001 Heller
20010027328 October 4, 2001 Lum et al.
20010031931 October 18, 2001 Cunningham et al.
20010054319 December 27, 2001 Heller et al.
20020002344 January 3, 2002 Douglas et al.
20020004196 January 10, 2002 Whitson
20020025469 February 28, 2002 Heller
20020029058 March 7, 2002 Levaughn et al.
20020040230 April 4, 2002 Kuhr et al.
20020042090 April 11, 2002 Heller
20020044890 April 18, 2002 Black
20020052618 May 2, 2002 Haar et al.
20020053523 May 9, 2002 Liamos
20020057993 May 16, 2002 Maisey
20020076349 June 20, 2002 Aitken
20020078091 June 20, 2002 Vu et al.
20020081588 June 27, 2002 Lumley-Woodyear
20020082543 June 27, 2002 Park et al.
20020084196 July 4, 2002 Liamos
20020087056 July 4, 2002 Aceti et al.
20020092612 July 18, 2002 Davies
20020103499 August 1, 2002 Perez et al.
20020120216 August 29, 2002 Fritz et al.
20020130042 September 19, 2002 Moerman
20020136667 September 26, 2002 Subramanian
20020136863 September 26, 2002 Subramanian et al.
20020137998 September 26, 2002 Smart et al.
20020148739 October 17, 2002 Liamos
20020160520 October 31, 2002 Orloff
20020161289 October 31, 2002 Hopkins, II et al.
20020168290 November 14, 2002 Yuzhakov
20020169393 November 14, 2002 Cunningham et al.
20020176984 November 28, 2002 Smart
20020177761 November 28, 2002 Orloff et al.
20020188224 December 12, 2002 Roe et al.
20030018282 January 23, 2003 Effenhauser et al.
20030018300 January 23, 2003 Duchon et al.
20030028126 February 6, 2003 List
20030050573 March 13, 2003 Kuhr et al.
20030050656 March 13, 2003 Schraga
20030060730 March 27, 2003 Perez
20030073089 April 17, 2003 Mauze
20030073229 April 17, 2003 Greenstein
20030073931 April 17, 2003 Boecker et al.
20030083685 May 1, 2003 Freeman et al.
20030083686 May 1, 2003 Freeman et al.
20030088191 May 8, 2003 Freeman et al.
20030089730 May 15, 2003 May, Sr.
20030093010 May 15, 2003 Essenpreis
20030100040 May 29, 2003 Bonnecaze
20030106810 June 12, 2003 Douglas
20030109777 June 12, 2003 Kloepfer et al.
20030111357 June 19, 2003 Black
20030113827 June 19, 2003 Burkoth
20030116447 June 26, 2003 Sturridge
20030135333 July 17, 2003 Aceti et al.
20030143113 July 31, 2003 Yuzkahov
20030144608 July 31, 2003 Kojima et al.
20030144609 July 31, 2003 Kennedy
20030146110 August 7, 2003 Karinka
20030149348 August 7, 2003 Raskas
20030149377 August 7, 2003 Erickson et al.
20030153900 August 14, 2003 Aceti et al.
20030191415 October 9, 2003 Moerman et al.
20030195435 October 16, 2003 Williams
20030195540 October 16, 2003 Moerman
20030199744 October 23, 2003 Buse et al.
20030199789 October 23, 2003 Boecker et al.
20030199790 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199791 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199891 October 23, 2003 Arganer
20030199893 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199894 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199896 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199897 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199898 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199899 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199900 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199901 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199902 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199903 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199904 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199905 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199906 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199907 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199908 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199909 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199910 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199911 October 23, 2003 Boecker
20030199912 October 23, 2003 Pugh
20030201194 October 30, 2003 Heller
20030203352 October 30, 2003 Haviland
20030206828 November 6, 2003 Bell
20030208140 November 6, 2003 Pugh
20030212344 November 13, 2003 Yuzhakov
20030212345 November 13, 2003 McAllister
20030212346 November 13, 2003 McAllister
20030212347 November 13, 2003 Sohrab
20030212423 November 13, 2003 Pugh
20030212424 November 13, 2003 Briggs
20030216767 November 20, 2003 List
20030217918 November 27, 2003 Davies
20030220552 November 27, 2003 Reghabi
20030220663 November 27, 2003 Fletcher
20030223906 December 4, 2003 McAllister
20030225429 December 4, 2003 Garthe
20030225430 December 4, 2003 Sebraga
20030228637 December 11, 2003 Wang
20030232370 December 18, 2003 Trifiro
20030233055 December 18, 2003 Erickson
20030233112 December 18, 2003 Alden et al.
20030233113 December 18, 2003 Alden et al.
20040006285 January 8, 2004 Douglas
20040007585 January 15, 2004 Griffith
20040009100 January 15, 2004 Simons
20040010279 January 15, 2004 Freeman
20040015064 January 22, 2004 Parsons
20040019250 January 29, 2004 Catelli
20040026243 February 12, 2004 Davies
20040030353 February 12, 2004 Schmelzeisen-R
20040031682 February 19, 2004 Wilsey
20040034318 February 19, 2004 Fritz
20040038045 February 26, 2004 Smart
20040039303 February 26, 2004 Wurster
20040039342 February 26, 2004 Eppstein
20040039407 February 26, 2004 Sehraga
20040039408 February 26, 2004 Abulhaj
20040049220 March 11, 2004 Boecker
20040054267 March 18, 2004 Feldman
20040054898 March 18, 2004 Heller
20040059256 March 25, 2004 Perez
20040060818 April 1, 2004 Feldman
20040061841 April 1, 2004 Black
20040064068 April 1, 2004 DeNuzzio
20040092995 May 13, 2004 Boecker
20040096991 May 20, 2004 Zhang
20040098010 May 20, 2004 Davison
20040102803 May 27, 2004 Boecker
20040106858 June 3, 2004 Say
20040106859 June 3, 2004 Say
20040106860 June 3, 2004 Say
20040106904 June 3, 2004 Gonnelli
20040106941 June 3, 2004 Roe
20040115754 June 17, 2004 Chang
20040115831 June 17, 2004 Meathrel
20040116829 June 17, 2004 Raney
20040122339 June 24, 2004 Roe
20040127818 July 1, 2004 Roe
20040127819 July 1, 2004 Roe
20040127928 July 1, 2004 Whitson
20040127929 July 1, 2004 Roe
20040132167 July 8, 2004 Rule
20040133125 July 8, 2004 Miyashita
20040133127 July 8, 2004 Roe
20040138541 July 15, 2004 Ward
20040138588 July 15, 2004 Saikley
20040138688 July 15, 2004 Girand
20040146958 July 29, 2004 Bae
20040154932 August 12, 2004 Deng
20040157017 August 12, 2004 Mauze
20040157149 August 12, 2004 Hofmann
20040157319 August 12, 2004 Keen
20040157338 August 12, 2004 Burke
20040157339 August 12, 2004 Burke
20040158137 August 12, 2004 Eppstein
20040158271 August 12, 2004 Hamamoto
20040161737 August 19, 2004 Yang
20040162473 August 19, 2004 Sohrab
20040162474 August 19, 2004 Kiser
20040162506 August 19, 2004 Duchon
20040162573 August 19, 2004 Keheiri
20040167383 August 26, 2004 Kim
20040171057 September 2, 2004 Yang
20040171968 September 2, 2004 Katsuki
20040172000 September 2, 2004 Roe
20040173472 September 9, 2004 Jung
20040173488 September 9, 2004 Griffin
20040176705 September 9, 2004 Stevens
20040176732 September 9, 2004 Frazier
20040178066 September 16, 2004 Miyazaki
20040178067 September 16, 2004 Miyazaki
20040178216 September 16, 2004 Brickwood
20040180379 September 16, 2004 van Duyne
20040182703 September 23, 2004 Bell
20040185568 September 23, 2004 Matsumoto
20040186359 September 23, 2004 Beaudoin
20040186394 September 23, 2004 Roe
20040186500 September 23, 2004 Koilke
20040193201 September 30, 2004 Kim
20040194302 October 7, 2004 Bhullar
20040197231 October 7, 2004 Katsuki
20040197821 October 7, 2004 Bauer
20040199062 October 7, 2004 Petersson
20040200720 October 14, 2004 Musho
20040200721 October 14, 2004 Bhullar
20040202576 October 14, 2004 Aceti
20040204662 October 14, 2004 Perez
20040206625 October 21, 2004 Bhullar
20040206636 October 21, 2004 Hodges
20040206658 October 21, 2004 Hammerstedt
20040209307 October 21, 2004 Valkirs
20040209350 October 21, 2004 Sakata
20040209354 October 21, 2004 Mathies
20040210279 October 21, 2004 Gruzdev
20040211666 October 28, 2004 Pamidi
20040214253 October 28, 2004 Paek
20040215224 October 28, 2004 Sakata
20040215225 October 28, 2004 Nakayama
20040216516 November 4, 2004 Sato
20040217019 November 4, 2004 Cai
20040219535 November 4, 2004 Bell
20040220456 November 4, 2004 Eppstein
20040220495 November 4, 2004 Cahir
20040220603 November 4, 2004 Rutynowski
20040222092 November 11, 2004 Musho
20040224369 November 11, 2004 Cai
20040225230 November 11, 2004 Liamos
20040225311 November 11, 2004 Levaughn
20040225312 November 11, 2004 Orloff
20040230216 November 18, 2004 Levaughn
20040231984 November 25, 2004 Lauks
20040232009 November 25, 2004 Okuda
20040236250 November 25, 2004 Hodges
20040236251 November 25, 2004 Roe
20040236268 November 25, 2004 Mitragotri
20040236362 November 25, 2004 Schraga
20040238357 December 2, 2004 Bhullar
20040238358 December 2, 2004 Forrow
20040238359 December 2, 2004 Ikeda
20040241746 December 2, 2004 Adlassnig
20040242977 December 2, 2004 Dosmann
20040243164 December 2, 2004 D'Agostino
20040243165 December 2, 2004 Koike
20040245101 December 9, 2004 Willner
20040248282 December 9, 2004 Sobha
20040248312 December 9, 2004 Vreeke
20040249310 December 9, 2004 Shartle
20040249311 December 9, 2004 Haar
20040249405 December 9, 2004 Watanabe
20040249406 December 9, 2004 Griffin
20040251131 December 16, 2004 Ueno
20040253634 December 16, 2004 Wang
20040254434 December 16, 2004 Goodnow
20040254599 December 16, 2004 Lipoma
20040256228 December 23, 2004 Huang
20040256248 December 23, 2004 Burka
20040256685 December 23, 2004 Chou
20040258564 December 23, 2004 Charlton
20040260204 December 23, 2004 Boecker
20040260324 December 23, 2004 Fukuzawa
20040260325 December 23, 2004 Kuhr
20040260326 December 23, 2004 Lipoma
20040260511 December 23, 2004 Burke
20040267105 December 30, 2004 Monfre
20040267160 December 30, 2004 Perez
20040267229 December 30, 2004 Moerman
20040267299 December 30, 2004 Kuriger
20040267300 December 30, 2004 Mace
20050000806 January 6, 2005 Hsieh
20050000807 January 6, 2005 Wang
20050000808 January 6, 2005 Cui
20050003470 January 6, 2005 Nelson
20050004494 January 6, 2005 Perez
20050008537 January 13, 2005 Mosolu
20050008851 January 13, 2005 Ezoe
20050009191 January 13, 2005 Swenson
20050010090 January 13, 2005 Acosta
20050010093 January 13, 2005 Ford
20050010134 January 13, 2005 Douglas
20050010137 January 13, 2005 Hodges
20050010198 January 13, 2005 Marchitto
20050011759 January 20, 2005 Moerman
20050013731 January 20, 2005 Burke
20050014997 January 20, 2005 Ruchti
20050015020 January 20, 2005 Levaughn
20050016844 January 27, 2005 Burke
20050019212 January 27, 2005 Bhullar
20050019219 January 27, 2005 Oshiman
20050019805 January 27, 2005 Groll
20050019945 January 27, 2005 Groll
20050019953 January 27, 2005 Groll
20050021066 January 27, 2005 Kuhr
Foreign Patent Documents
29824204 October 2000 DE
10032042 January 2002 DE
10057832 February 2002 DE
10142232 March 2003 DE
0289 269 November 1988 EP
0320109 June 1989 EP
0170375 May 1990 EP
0136362 December 1990 EP
0453283 October 1991 EP
0374355 June 1993 EP
0351891 September 1993 EP
0593096 April 1994 EP
0415388 May 1995 EP
0505494 July 1995 EP
0359831 August 1995 EP
0471986 October 1995 EP
0368474 December 1995 EP
0461601 December 1995 EP
0429076 January 1996 EP
0552223 July 1996 EP
0735363 October 1996 EP
0505504 March 1997 EP
0406304 August 1997 EP
0537761 August 1997 EP
0795601 September 1997 EP
0562370 November 1997 EP
0415393 December 1997 EP
0560336 May 1998 EP
0878 708 November 1998 EP
0505475 March 1999 EP
0901018 March 1999 EP
0470649 June 1999 EP
0847447 November 1999 EP
0964059 December 1999 EP
0969097 January 2000 EP
1021950 July 2000 EP
0894869 February 2001 EP
1074832 February 2001 EP
1093854 April 2001 EP
1101443 May 2001 EP
1114995 July 2001 EP
0736607 August 2001 EP
0730037 December 2001 EP
0636879 January 2002 EP
0851224 March 2002 EP
0856586 May 2002 EP
0817809 July 2002 EP
0872728 July 2002 EP
0795748 August 2002 EP
0685737 September 2002 EP
0880692 January 2004 EP
1246688 May 2004 EP
1790288 May 2007 EP
2039294 March 2009 EP
2168815 June 1986 GB
2335860 October 1999 GB
2335990 October 1999 GB
HEI 4-194660 July 1992 JP
9-276235 October 1997 JP
2000-116768 April 2000 JP
WO80/01389 July 1980 WO
WO85/04089 September 1985 WO
WO86/07632 December 1985 WO
WO91/09139 June 1991 WO
WO 93/02720 February 1993 WO
WO93/02720 February 1993 WO
WO93/06979 April 1993 WO
WO93/12726 July 1993 WO
WO 93/12726 July 1993 WO
WO93/25898 December 1993 WO
WO94/27140 November 1994 WO
WO94/29703 December 1994 WO
WO94/29704 December 1994 WO
WO94/29731 December 1994 WO
WO95/00662 January 1995 WO
WO95/10223 April 1995 WO
WO95/22597 August 1995 WO
WO96/30431 October 1996 WO
WO97/02359 January 1997 WO
WO97/02487 January 1997 WO
WO 97/11883 April 1997 WO
WO97/18464 May 1997 WO
WO97/30344 August 1997 WO
WO97/42882 November 1997 WO
WO97/42888 November 1997 WO
WO97/45720 December 1997 WO
WO98/03431 January 1998 WO
WO98/19159 May 1998 WO
WO98/20332 May 1998 WO
WO98/20348 May 1998 WO
WO98/24366 June 1998 WO
WO 98/024373 June 1998 WO
WO98/35225 August 1998 WO
WO99/03584 January 1999 WO
WO99/05966 February 1999 WO
WO 99/13100 March 1999 WO
WO 99/19507 April 1999 WO
WO 99/19717 April 1999 WO
WO 99/27852 June 1999 WO
WO 99/62576 December 1999 WO
WO 99/64580 December 1999 WO
WO 00/09184 February 2000 WO
WO 00/30186 May 2000 WO
WO 00/39914 July 2000 WO
WO 00/44084 July 2000 WO
WO 00/50771 August 2000 WO
WO 00/60340 October 2000 WO
WO 00/64022 October 2000 WO
WO 00/67245 November 2000 WO
WO 00/67268 November 2000 WO
WO 01/00090 January 2001 WO
WO 01/00090 January 2001 WO
WO 01/75433 March 2001 WO
WO 01/23885 April 2001 WO
WO 01/25775 April 2001 WO
WO 01/26813 April 2001 WO
WO 01/33216 May 2001 WO
WO 01/34029 May 2001 WO
WO 01/36955 May 2001 WO
WO 01/40788 July 2001 WO
WO 01/57510 August 2001 WO
WO 01/64105 September 2001 WO
WO 01/66010 September 2001 WO
WO 01/66010 September 2001 WO
WO 01/72225 October 2001 WO
WO 01/73124 October 2001 WO
WO 01/73395 October 2001 WO
WO 01/89691 November 2001 WO
WO 02/00101 January 2002 WO
WO 02/02796 January 2002 WO
WO 02/08750 January 2002 WO
WO 02/08753 January 2002 WO
WO 02/08950 January 2002 WO
WO 02/18940 March 2002 WO
WO 02/32559 April 2002 WO
WO 02/41779 May 2002 WO
WO 02/44948 June 2002 WO
WO 02/056769 July 2002 WO
WO 02/059734 August 2002 WO
WO 02/069791 September 2002 WO
WO 02/077638 October 2002 WO
WO 02/100251 December 2002 WO
WO 02/100252 December 2002 WO
WO 02/100253 December 2002 WO
WO 02/100254 December 2002 WO
WO 02/100460 December 2002 WO
WO 02/100461 December 2002 WO
WO 02/101343 December 2002 WO
WO 02/101359 December 2002 WO
WO 03/000321 January 2003 WO
WO 03/023389 March 2003 WO
WO 03/042691 May 2003 WO
WO 03/045557 June 2003 WO
WO 03/046542 June 2003 WO
WO 03/049609 June 2003 WO
WO 03/050534 June 2003 WO
WO 03/066128 August 2003 WO
WO 03/070099 August 2003 WO
WO 03/071940 September 2003 WO
WO 03/082091 October 2003 WO
WO 03/088851 October 2003 WO
WO 2004/008130 January 2004 WO
WO 2004/026130 April 2004 WO
WO 2004/041082 May 2004 WO
WO 2004/054455 July 2004 WO
WO 2004/060174 July 2004 WO
WO 2004/060446 July 2004 WO
WO 2004/091693 October 2004 WO
WO 2004/107964 December 2004 WO
WO 2004/107975 December 2004 WO
WO 2004/112602 December 2004 WO
WO 2004/112612 December 2004 WO
WO 2005/001418 January 2005 WO
WO 2005/104948 November 2005 WO
Patent History
Patent number: 7780631
Type: Grant
Filed: Nov 6, 2001
Date of Patent: Aug 24, 2010
Patent Publication Number: 20020042594
Assignee: Pelikan Technologies, Inc. (Palo Alto, CA)
Inventors: Paul Lum (Los Altos, CA), Hewlett E. Melton, Jr. (Sunnyvale, CA), Tad Decataur Simons (Palo Alto, CA), Michael Greenstein (Los Altos, CA), Dominique M. Freeman (La Honda, CA)
Primary Examiner: Nicholas D Lucchesi
Assistant Examiner: Christopher D Koharski
Attorney: Goodwin Procter LLP
Application Number: 10/008,159
Classifications
Current U.S. Class: Having Structure For Controlling Depth Of Insertion Of Body Piercer (604/117)
International Classification: A61M 5/00 (20060101);